Contempt charges were dropped this week for a Kentucky teen who faced possible jail time after breaking a gag order and tweeting the names of her attackers.

Defense attorneys asked for charges against the teen, Savannah Dietrich, because she violated court order in releasing the names of two teenage boys who plead guilty to sexually assaulting her.

However, as of Monday, July 23, defense attorneys dropped the contempt charges.

Because the story of Dietrich’s tweet went global and the names of the teenage boys spread further than the initial tweet, said David Mejia, defense attorney for one of the the two teenage boys, contempt proceedings would be meaningless.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post

MTA sued after ad refusal

A federal judge said the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority violated a group’s free speech rights by refusing to run potentially offensive ads.

American Freedom Defense Initiative sought to place an ad that said, “In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man,” The New York Times reported.  The ad also called for people to “Support Israel” and “Defeat Jihad.”

The MTA refused to run the ads, saying it violated their policy against running derogatory ads against, among other things, people’s race, religion and nationality. They told the initiative they could revise and resubmit.

The American Freedom Defense Initiative instead sued in 2011, claiming the transit authority’s policy violated their free speech rights.

Federal Judge Paul A. Engelmayer ruled Friday, July 20,  in the group’s favor.

The proposed ad represents political speech and falls within First Amendment protections, Engelmayer said.

Engelmayer said the MTA’s policy, though well-intended, violates free speech rights; they cannot allow some types of negative ads and not others.

He praised the transportation agency’s effort to minimize harmful speech, but said it cannot selectively allow some types of discriminatory speech and not others.

Engelmayer suspended the ruling for 30 days, during which the MTA can attempt to make their policy constitutional.

Read Reuters and The New York Times coverage of and New York Daily News opinion on the ruling.

MTA asked to take down other ads

In a related incident, an elected New York official asked the MTA to take down ads showing the shrinking geography of Palestine and growth of Israel.

Assembly member Robert Castelli wrote a letter to the MTA saying the ads were offensive to the Jewish community and created disharmony. His letter appealed to the authority to take down the ads. However, given Englemayer’s recent ruling, Castelli may not have success with his petition.

The Center for Peace in Israel and Palestine paid for the ads.

Read more here.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Today’s wacky freedom of information tidbit comes from across the pond in the United Kingdom.

Zombies, aliens and Santa’s sleigh may be partly to blame for the backlogs in many agencies’ freedom of information responses.

What do these three have to do with FOI, you ask?

They were all on a list of weirdest freedom of information requests in 2011 in the United Kingdom. While laughable, it is problematic when agencies spend precious time responding to frivolous requests like these.

“Across the country, hundreds of freedom of information requests are sent to local authorities every day. Councils are committed to transparency and accountability and put a lot of time and effort into ensuring that legitimate requests for information are met with full and comprehensive responses,” said Councillor Peter Fleming, Local Government Association improvement board chairman, in a news release.  ”However, as this list shows, some of the requests councils receive do not appear to relate very closely to the services they are focused on delivering every day of the year.”

The weirdest request: A petition odd enough to make one question either the requester’s sincerity or mental stability.

“How does the council plan to help the brave soldiers of our infantry if and when Napoleon and his marauding hordes invade the district?” read the request to West Devon District Council.

Many people in the freedom of information community are making good use of new open records legislation by exposing scandals and keeping government officials accountable. But senseless queries delegitimize the crucially important role of  freedom of information.

Read the full top-10 list.

The Local Government Association in the United Kingdom, head of more than 350 English and Welsh councils, compiled the list.

Next week: FOI and UFOs

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Open records could have expedited Jerry Sandusky’s recent conviction.

Recently, former FBI director Louis Freeh released findings from an investigation into the Jerry Sandusky-Penn State sex abuse story. The report issued several recommendations for preventing similar incidents in the future, but fell short of mentioning more robust open government laws in Pennsylvania, as Al Tompkins of Poynter noted.

Penn State is one of four universities exempt from the state’s open records laws.

Stronger open records laws may have allowed access to investigations into Sandusky’s behavior earlier than the decade plus it took for the the initial 1998 investigation to come to light, Tompkins wrote.

Read more on the potential impact of open records laws in the Sandusky case.

Iowa university retains documents under FERPA

In an incident involving similar restricted access to documents, the Iowa Supreme Court said even redacted sexual assault records would remain private.

The Iowa City Press Citizen requested relevant documents related to a 2007 case involving University of Iowa football players’ alleged sexual assault of a female student athlete.

The university released 18 of 3,000 documents and claimed the release of additional documents would violate the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

FERPA protects the personal information of students  and orders financial sanctions on educational institutions that fail to comply.

The Press Citizen sued for release of additional documents and was granted release of additional documents in 2008 and 2009, although courts ordered some redacted. The university appealed.

Iowa’s Supreme Court recently ruled in the school’s favor. The Court justified its ruling with provisions from a 2009 Department of Education ruling preventing disclosure if the requester knew the  identity of  people in the records.

Frank LoMonte, executive director of Student Press Law Center, said this ruling went too far.

“Extremists in the U.S. Department of Education have hijacked a well-intentioned law about the confidentiality of academic records and, by their bizarre interpretations, transformed it into the Federal Education Rapists’ Protection Act,” he said, according to the Student Press Law Center.

Also check out:

• The Freeh Report
• Read more on the Iowa case here.
• The Iowa Supreme Court’s Ruling
• A friend of the court brief filed in the Iowa case by Reporter’s Committee For Freedom of the Press
• The Iowa City Press Citizen reaction to the ruling.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post

Aspiring young journalists will meet with judges, media and government officials to learn about their futures as fourth-estate watchdogs.

Fifty-one journalists, one from each state and the District of Columbia, were selected to attend the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference, July 14 to 19, at the Newseum, the The Wall Street Journal reported.

In addition to a $1,000 scholarship, they will tour the nation’s capitol and learn at the feet of professionals.  The conference is aimed giving the keen young minds the resources and impetus to pursue media careers.

Events include:

• Learning about the First Amendment, the three branches of the government and how journalists cover them
• Visiting the White House
• Visiting USA Today

Presenters include:

• U.S. Legislators
• Media professionals from print and broadcast outlets
• White House Deputy Press Secretary Jamie Smith

The Freedom Forum is the head of this scholarship opportunity. They recruited the help of the  Journalism Education Association, media outlets and high school journalism teachers to spread the word to students.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Giraffes have rights, too.

This week we will look back at wacky Freedom of Information requests or denials. Today’s denial was sent in by Charles Davis, associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism and SPJ Freedom of Information committee member.

A reporter requesting a dead giraffe’s medical records was denied access because of the animal’s privacy rights.

After the death of Ryma in 2002, a giraffe  housed in  Smithsonian’s National Zoo, Washington Post reporter D’Vera Cohn requested the necropsy and pathology reports and the animal’s medical records.

The National Zoo rejected the request out of respect for the dead giraffe’s privacy, said Lucy Spelman, National Zoo director at the time, The Washington Post reported.

However, this denial had some animal rights supporters scratching their heads, including Laurence Tribe of Harvard Law. Tribe supported legislation allowing legal representation for animal rights.

“It is sort of the fox guarding the hen house,”  he said of the National Zoo.  ”They are clearly the ones whose neglect or mistreatment might be at issue.”

Post reporter Cohn had few options after the denial because the Smithsonian is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, the Washington Post explained, because although federally funded, the Smithsonian does not belong of the Executive branch.

Despite this, the Smithsonian has a disclosure policy and has responded to other requests for information, the Post reported.

For the full article, click here.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Police violating open access laws, newspaper says

A gang boundary map is being withheld by police in Ohio.

After learning about its existence, the Toledo Blade requested to see and copy the map of growing gang-related activity and shootings from this year, Blade staff writer Erika Blake reported.

Police claimed that disclosing the map would interfere with ongoing investigations.

The Toledo Blade sued the city of Toledo because it said outright concealment violated Ohio’s open records law. The Blade said police should at least release a redacted version of the map.

The police department’s tight fist on the map came after officers already told a Blade reporter about the map on more than one occasion. The map allegedly hangs on a wall in the Safety Building and is available on the department’s computer system, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit states public interest should be taken into consideration because city officials are planning to reallocate police resources, including possibly relocating a police station, the Blade reported.

Read more here.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with SPJ. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Newspaper, congressmen, fight back

A Department of Justice attorney tried to stop a Daily Iberian reporter from recording a public meeting or quoting her.

Jeff Zeringue, managing editor of The Daily Iberian, filed a complaint with the Department of Justice on June 15, in response.

As of 2 p.m. EST on Thursday, Zeringue had not heard back.

Louisiana’s Rep. Jeff Landry and Sen. David Vitter joined Zeringue’s battle by sending letters to Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“I came to Washington to fight for an open, accountable, and transparent government,” Landry wrote, reported the Associated Press.  ”I find it wholly unacceptable that our government, specifically the DOJ, has not responded to Mr. Zeringue’s complaint.”

However, Justice Department spokeswoman Nanda Chitre, said the attorney never tried to prevent publication of or change the news story.

Upon entering the meeting in New Iberia on June 12,  Department of Justice attorney Rachel Hranitzky asked if any reporters were present, according to The Daily Iberian. Iberian reporter Matthew Beaton identified himself.

Hranitzky, a senior trial attorney in the department’s Civil Rights Division, said – according to policy—the reporter could remain in the meeting and quote other people who spoke, but could not tape the meeting or quote her.

Beaton protested.  Because it was a public meeting he should be allowed to quote anyone speaking,  he said.  Eventually Hranitzky threatened to throw the reporter out of the meeting.

She warned Beaton about getting on the department’s “bad side,” Beaton reported.

After Beaton and others in the meeting protested, Hranitzky relented and allowed Beaton to stay in the meeting.

The Daily Iberian filed a complaint with Thomas E. Perez, the U.S. Assistant Attorney General over the department’s Civil Rights Division ,  on June 15, according to Zeringue.

“The events of June 12 appear to be a violation of the reporter’s civil rights, as well as a violation of the public trust. Left unchallenged could give the department the feeling of reigning over it citizens, not defending them,”Zeringue said in his editorial.

The Reporter’s Committee for Freedom of the Press also sent a letter to Perez.

“We are gravely concerned over any internal practice or policy preventing journalists from recording or quoting statements made by DOJ officials in public meetings,” said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of Reporter’s Committee For Freedom of the Press, according to The Daily Iberian.

Editor’s Note – The Associated Press story cited above was published by The Huffington Post on July 12.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with SPJ. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Freedom of Information and government disclosure often conjure mental images of closed-door meetings and top-secret war documents. However, the government’s tight fist on some older, high-profile documents has piqued public interest.

Kennedy docs kept secret

The government is refusing to disclose some documents related to John F. Kennedy’s assassination, even though almost 50 years have gone by. National Archives and Records Administration houses many documents related to our government’s history.

When NARA posed a question on an open forum to see what it could do to boost transparency, JFK’s assassination came out on top, reports Salon.com.  However, those documents remain hidden from public view. Currently 50,000 documents related to the Kennedy assassination are still classified. David Ferriero, National Archives Chief, said they will likely remain that way until at least 2017. Naturally,  NARA’s refusal to release documents related to the Kennedy assassination has some people asking why.  One reason behind the delay may be attributed to the sheer volume of information:  Ferriero has been tasked with reducing the backlog of more than 400 million records older than 25 years.

Documents available on the the CIA website

Although there is much to lament about government’s lack of transparency, investigative journalists can utilize the information that is already available from government entities, such as these fun finds available at cia.gov.

• Spy-Fi Archives: A section of the website is dedicated to the Hollywood version of the CIA. “CIA meets TV-movies CIA” listsHollywood spy memorabilia in spy-fi creator Danny Biederman’s collection.  Biederman, a spy movie junkie and expert, boasts the world’s largest collection of espionage movie collectibles.  In addition to this, those interested can view Biederman’s biography.
• Special Collections:  This section includes formerly top-secret information on events such as the Bay of Pigs, the end of the Cold War and the Berlin Wall.
• Includes top 25 search phrases and top 25 most-requested documents, (although it seems the website is in dire need of an update since the most recent results are from November 2011.)

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with SPJ. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.

Microfinance expert blows whistle on corruption

One whistleblower’s extensive knowledge of microfinance has effectively protected him against potential retaliation —  even after publication of his book exposing scandals in the industry.

Hugh Sinclair’s book “Confessions of a Microfinance Heretic” discusses the corruption evident in the microfinance industry. Although praised by many from U2 singer Bono to Hillary Clinton, Sinclair’s research reveals the industry’s  exorbitant interest rates and harsh collection tactics, Huffington Post reports.  Money initially intended to go toward a business will go instead toward providing basic life necessities or paying off other loans. Loans from these microfinance institutions (MFIs) come with a hefty burden, sometimes charging interest rates of 100 percent or higher.  Microfinance can be beneficial, but only if the lenders are more transparent and have accountability, Sinclair told Bloomberg Businessweek. Sinclair still works with honest microfinance agencies, but has published his findings in an attempt to shed light on those whose practices do not measure up to expectations.

“His goal is not to destroy the microfinance industry but to hold it accountable,” Huffington Post reports.

Although many whistleblowers experience retaliation in some form, Sinclair is effectively safeguarded from such because of his expertise in the field.

Some Wall Street folks admit they would cheat

Wall Street seems to be making a case for its need for increased oversight and transparency.  Roughly a quarter of Wall Street executives surveyed said they saw bending or breaking laws as necessary to get ahead professionally. Five hundred Wall Street executives in the U.S. and U.K. responded to survey questions regarding observations and intentions of engaging in corrupt practices.  Labaton Sucharow, a law firm focused on corporate responsibility and whistleblower protection, conducted the survey. Read more here.

Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with SPJ. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email –  wevans@hq.spj.org –  or on twitter – @whitevs7

*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.